Lucina's Journey
by Freshy
Summary: In order to preserve the time in the present, Lucina vanishes shortly after the war ends and ventures on to places unknown to live out a quiet and hidden life. Unfortunately, a mysterious evil threatens to consume all stability in both the present and parallel universes. Follow her as she embarks on another journey through time to combat this chaos and restore order to the realms.
1. Chapter 1

**If you have the time and patience at the end of this story, then please read my AN.**

* * *

The hours of the morning were slowly beginning, but the sun had barely begun to rise, leaving the land still enshrouded in shadows. These conditions were perfect. She could slip away like a thief in the night, and no one will ever notice her leaving. Then she could go anywhere she wanted to, live a new life, and finally escape her worries. This, after all, would be best for everyone, right?

Lucina looked around her room, which her father gave to her while she was here. Little did he know that her stay would be temporary, and she would be leaving him soon. She did a double take around her quarters, making sure she wasn't leaving any of her personal belongings behind. The battle heroine paused when she looked at her sword, the Falchion of the future. For years had this sword protected her from the worst of fates, helping her succeed in restoring the present as well as the future. It was for this reason that she was leaving her beloved sword behind. The battle had been won; her mission was a success; evil was no longer a threat to the world. Her father was alive now, so she couldn't even inherit it at the moment, and frankly, she didn't even want it anymore. She left the sword in its scabbard and leaned it against a corner in the wall before moving towards her wardrobe. Gone were the clothes she used to disguise herself as her distant relative, gone were any traces of her old life. She was shedding away anything that people could use to link back to her. She wanted to disappear from everyone's memory, like she never existed in the first place. After finding a suitable outfit, she literally tore the clothes right off of her, leaving them in a pitiful, wrinkled heap, and put on something less dignified than what a normal princess would wear. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. What was her mother talking about? Navy pants _totally _went together perfectly with a black tunic.

As she continued to stare at herself in the mirror, she realized that there was one thing that she just could not conceal, and that was the Brand that settled right on her eyelid. She couldn't ask Gerome to make her another mask; that would just make her intentions seem too obvious. She'd have to do something extreme, like taking something sharp and stabbing it in her cornea, or ingesting some kind of potion that would completely distort the appearance of her eye. She couldn't bring herself to do that…for now. Instead, she took her bangs and swooped them over the left side of her face. Even without her Brand being visible, she still looked like the same Lucina. This would not do. She grabbed a fistful of her hair, pulled it behind her head, and used her free hand to pick up a dagger. She was a little scared at trying this, but she didn't really have anything to lose. Everyone who knew her would never see her again, so why should she care if she had such a crude haircut? She could shave her head if it came down to it and no one would be able to recognize her. She was about to severe her hair strands as short as she could when she heard someone come in. Panicked, she released her grip on her hair, and held the dagger defensively. Much to her relief, as well as her annoyance, it was only Morgan. She temporarily forgot that he too was living in the castle after his parents died in the war and her mother and father adopted him. He looked taken aback, but tried to hide it in his voice.

"Lucina, what are you doing?" He almost demanded.

"Help me with this." She simply commanded, handing him the dagger.

Again, she pulled her hair back, and pointed at the dagger in his hands. Morgan immediately understood, but still looked a little unsure. A harsh glare from Lucina prompted him to do as told. He sighed; sometimes he really hated the fact that she had him wrapped around her finger. With clean motions, Morgan carefully razored every piece of long hair until it fell short against her head. Lucina opened her eyes, and nearly flinched at the stranger staring back at her. But that was no stranger; that was her own reflection. Her hair now came down to the middle of her neck- save for the bangs that covered her eye- and was spiked in different, uneven directions. However, it was enough to alter her appearance, and she was satisfied with that.

"You know, binding it would be easier." Morgan said, but Lucina brushed him off. "You could easily pass off as a clone of the Hero of the Blue Flames."

"Oh hush. It's just hair. It'll grow back, and besides…it's not…that bad…" She felt her voice tremble, but she didn't know why. It was unlike her to care so much for something so trivial. This new style would just take some getting used to was all. Without hesitating any longer, Lucina helped Morgan clean up the remains of her hair and discarded it in a waste bin. After making sure there was no evidence of her leaving, she grabbed her satchel and began to walk out of her room without taking another glance.

"Lucina!"

Lucina flinched when she heard her name, then she realized she had forgotten that Morgan was still following her. His eyes were filled with worry, and clearly insisting an explanation.

"Please tell me what you're up to!" He practically begged. "You're packing away all of your things, changing your clothes, and cutting your hair. But why?"

"I can't stay here, Morgan." She whispered, though her voice was beginning to rise in defense. "I've overstayed my welcome in this time and I have to leave now."

"You're still on about that? But your father said you could stay! And all of the others are staying here too…"

"It doesn't matter. You have the luxury of staying here because you're from another timeline. But I have to leave. Things just can't be this way…"

"Where are you going to go though?"

"I can't tell you that. But I will tell you that I'm going to go to a place where my identity is unknown, and my presence won't interfere with this place in time."

"Lucina…"

"Morgan, thank you for all your help. I leave you and Owain in charge of the Children Shepherds. Also, please don't tell anyone, especially my parents, that I'm doing this, okay?"

"Wait, I wanna go with you too!"

"No, Morgan!" Lucina nearly shouted, but she restrained herself from doing so. "This is something I have to do myself. Besides, my parents are your parents now. Stay with them, learn from them, care for them. Do the things that I can't do in the present. Alright?"

"I'll…I'll do my best."

"Thanks, Morgan." Lucina smiled, but it was bitter. "Well…good luck."

"You too…Lucina…" Morgan looked like he wanted to cry, but he gave her a brief salute.

Lucina inhaled deeply, then turned her heel and began to walk out of the castle that she once called home, away from her friends, away from her family, away from her life. Morgan stood in the empty corridors, watching as she left, then began to go back to his room in the castle. He paused when he put his hands in his pockets and withdrew a flower. He had picked that flower especially for Lucina, but he forgot to give it to her. That was enough to cause a tear to leak from his eyes.

"Lucina…" He bit down on his tongue to prevent himself from breaking down completely. "Well…I guess I could give it to Nah…she was looking for this kind of flower the other day."

* * *

Lucina wasn't sure how long she had been travelling, but she estimated it to be a good while because of how high the sun was now. She could already tell the day was going to be hot, so she had to get to her destination as quickly as she could before that could happen.

"Can't believe I forgot to pack water." She muttered. "This is taking a lot longer than I was anticipating."

Lucina could feel the sun beating down on her back, and she swore she could start seeing hallucinations. This journey was harder than she remembered, but she surmised that it was because she didn't have any source of water on her, that she was already feeling weary. Finally, after wandering around for a few, stamina-wasting moments, she reached the place she was looking for: the Outrealms. Sweat dripped down her face in heavy streams, and she knew that if she didn't find water soon, then she was as good as dead. She urged herself to keep moving, but she knew her legs were slowly giving out underneath her.

"Just...a little…longer…" She breathed.

Her knees were screaming at this point, and soon she found herself lying on her back, with the sun shining right in her face. This wasn't going well. She knew she wanted to escape her old life, but she wasn't intending to die.

As she lied there baking in the sun, she thought she could hear the faint sound of someone humming in the distance. If the humming came from a person, then maybe they could help her! Mustering all her strength, Lucina rolled onto her stomach, and raised her head to look around. Sure enough, she saw someone sitting not too far away from her. Her vision slightly cleared up for a moment, and she was able to recognize the person as Old Hubba.

"H-Hey…" She called out to him weakly. "Old Hubba…"

Old Hubba turned around when he heard his name, and saw Lucina struggling to get to her feet. However, he didn't seem to identify her in the slightest.

"Have we…um…met?" He asked.

"My...my name is…Lucina…Chrom's daughter…" Lucina found it a task to even speak.

It seemed like an eternity for Old Hubba to register this information, but right when his mind clicked, he immediately remembered her.

"Ah, I know who you are now!" He exclaimed. "Gosh, what did you do to your hair, child? I couldn't even tell it was you!"

Lucina let out a raspy breath. She wouldn't last long in this state. "…water…"

"Hm? Speak up, dear. I'm a little short of hearing."

"Wa…ter….ugh…"

"Wa…ter…? Wat…er…Water! Oh, I see now. Water. That's a random thing to say to someone after you see them for the first time in a long time though…Lucina?"

Lucina had passed out at this point. Old Hubba, seeing that she was unresponsive, began to panic.

"Ah! Wait, don't…don't die on me…wait, I have some water right here!"

Old Hubba pulled out a canteen of water and began to pour it quickly down Lucina's throat. Lucina was able to drink it, but he was pouring the water down faster than she could swallow it, and she ended up coughing it back up. However, Old Hubba was just glad that he could revive her, and waited for her coughing fit to pass.

"The Outrealms can be harsh this time of year, Honey." He put a hand on her shoulder as he helped her sit up. "What were you thinking?"

Lucina let out a few more coughs to get the remaining water out of her airways before she spoke. "I…I came here to talk to you…"

"You came all the way out here just to visit me? I'm flattered…"

"Well, kind of…I was hoping you could help me…escape…"

"Sorry, dearie, I can't hear you when you mumble like that."

"I was hoping you could transport me to another timeline!"

Old Hubba smiled mischievously. "Oh, of course I can do that, but…well, Old Hubba's magic isn't what it used to be. So there's no telling where you'll end up…in one piece that is."

Lucina gulped.

"And well…this time-travel business doesn't come cheap…"

Catching onto Old Hubba's drift, Lucina hurled a pouch of gold right at Old Hubba's feet. Old Hubba grinned widely as he picked it up and examined the coins inside it.

"Oh yes, this is good, but…ehh…still a little short…"

Lucina stared at him in disbelief. "Short? But that's all the gold I have! Surely it can't be that expensive?"

"It's not, but I'm charging you extra for saving your life."

"What?!"

"What? Are you not grateful for that? Old Hubba is very generous. Anyone could leave you for dead up here, but you're lucky that someone like Old Hubba came along to give you some of his rich, refreshing, spring water. And that stuff isn't as cheap either."

Lucina grit her teeth to contain her anger. Her patience was really beginning to run thin with this man. "But I have nothing left to give you."

Old Hubba crossed his arms and pretended to walk away. "Well, you should've thought about that before you decided to run away. If you can't give me anything else, then you're on your own. Have a nice day!"

"Wait!" Lucina suddenly blurted out. It was enough to catch Old Hubba's attention. "You can have this…"

Old Hubba watched as Lucina's hands moved to her neck, pulling out a gold pendant out from underneath her clothes.

"That…is real gold, yes?" Old Hubba asked.

Lucina slowly nodded. "My mother gave this to me. I always wore it to give me luck in my travels…"

Old Hubba received the pendant, and inspected it over. It had a brilliant shine to it, and the few gems it carried seemed to glisten in the sunlight. He could make a fortune off of something like this. But then, he suddenly shoved it back at Lucina.

"You can keep it." He said. "I'll help you get to where you need to go."

Lucina was almost at a loss for words. "But I thought you said…"

"Remember? Old Hubba is very generous." He chuckled. "When I saw that you were willing to give away something so precious just to get me to open the Outrealm Gates, then I knew that you were serious about this. So…I'm letting you keep it."

"Thank you…Old Hubba…"

"No trouble at all." Old Hubba smiled. "Now, tell me where you want to go."

Lucina creased her brow in thought. "I want to go somewhere where I don't have to worry about this timeline, but not to a place too foreign to me."

"A parallel timeline perhaps?" Old Hubba suggested. "Anything that happens in that time won't affect this one."

"Yes...that'll be great."

"Good. Now then…let Old Hubba work his magic. You might feel a little dizziness at first…"

Lucina gave him a tearful smile as a small glow began to surround her. "I won't forget this, Old Hubba…"

Old Hubba smirked. "Neither shall I…Lucina."

A bright light enveloped the land in a blinding, white flash and when it dissipated, Old Hubba was the only one left standing. Lucina had vanished.

* * *

**So I'm not really a fan of Awakening. I don't even like it and I personally think it's not the best in the series. I know I said in my profile that I will not be writing any fics for it, so why did I write and publish this one as my first? Well 1. I like Lucina. She's an exception. 2. This isn't going to be an Awakening-centered fic. It's going to include all of the past FE games, maybe even Shin Megami Tensei (still deciding on that one), except for Awakening. Now for the sake of plot, a few FE13 characters might appear later on in the story, but none of them will have a key role except for Lucina and Morgan. That said, I hope you like it and will patiently wait for an update. I have so many ideas, but not enough time to put them all on paper unfortunately. PM me any requests you would like to see in this story, like which FE characters you would like Lucina to interact with, and/or what significant events from FE history you would want Lucina to be a part of. Thank you for reading and have a nice day.**


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter contains spoilers for FE12. Be ye warned...**

* * *

It was strange; for one moment, she was in the Outrealms, then before she could blink, she had been transported to another land. Lucina squinted her eyes as the sun was shining brightly down on her face. Once she registered that she was lying on her back, she tried to carefully get to her feet, however there was a sharp pain in her head that was making it throb mercilessly. Her stomach was turning inside out, and she thought her vision was blacking out. She suddenly got the urge to flip herself onto her stomach, and was temporarily sick on the ground. Once she had gotten those vile fluids out of her system, she found herself able to stand on very shaky legs. Despite her being completely disoriented at the moment, she could still register the sound of some men laughing in the distance. Her eyes locked onto a group of men, who were standing across the street, laughing hysterically like a bunch of jackals. Lucina gave them a confused look. Finally, one of them stepped forward to speak.

"Aw, the little wench can't handle a wittle alcohol?" He asked tauntingly.

Lucina looked behind her and saw, in some odd twist of events, that she had been transported conveniently outside of a pub. The blue-haired woman rolled her eyes; she had plenty of more important things to do than put up with a bunch of street hecklers all day. She immediately made a hand gesture which she had seen her father use a few times around people who liked to give him a hard time. She never really knew what the sign meant, but it was somehow able to get people to shut up and leave him alone. Sure enough, the same effect worked for her, and the men immediately stopped laughing and just walked away, though they did have somewhat offended expressions on their faces as they left. Lucina didn't care. She was just happy to finally be rid of those obnoxious brutes.

As soon as her mind was completely clear, she began to walk around this mysterious town. For some reason, this place felt vaguely familiar to her, and she just couldn't help but wonder just where in Naga's name did Old Hubba send her to. The town was fairly big, but not big enough to be a city or palace. Merchants and vendors lined the streets, apartment complexes were located around every block and corner. Children were running in the roads, chasing after pets and livestock while their parents were keeping close eyes on them as they were talking with their friends. Young women were trying on scarves and jewelry. She could see men coming in and out of the local taverns. Every so often, there were soldiers, all wearing the same uniform, stationed throughout the streets, making sure that there was no trouble going on, and getting ready to react at even the first sign of it.

"Life here seems to be as busy as Ylisse." Lucina found herself saying.

It was true; this place was almost exactly like the towns of Ylisse in terms of the people and the busy middle-class life. But what was this place? Old Hubba had said something about transporting her to a parallel universe so that her existence wouldn't mess with the current timeline, but he couldn't have sent her to a parallel Ylisse, could he? She desperately hoped he didn't. She wanted to escape Ylisse, not go to a place that pretty much resembled it in everything…plus, she wasn't sure her heart would be able to handle it if she had a run-in with her parallel parents.

While she was pondering these things, she found an elderly man walking out of a shop that was most likely his. He climbed atop a small stepladder and began undoing the binds off of a drapery. Once he was done untying all of the ropes, the drapery's design was completely revealed as it fell in front of the building, hovering barely a foot above the ground. It was white and green, with a red and blue crest sewn into the middle. Two swords, which scarily looked a lot like Falchion, were going through the crest.

"Do you like it? I got in on sale."

Lucina slightly jumped before she realized that the man had spoken, specifically to her.

"Oh. Yes, I like it a lot. It's a very beautiful design." She responded. "Er…could you explain to me what it is though?"

The man chuckled. "You mustn't be from here. This is the flag of our country. I…used to serve in the army here, so this flag means a lot to me."

"I see. What is this country?"

Her question was met with a weird stare.

"You…do not know where you are?"

Lucina felt herself blush. "No…I'm lost."

To fully explain her story would only result in giving that old man a stroke. The man didn't seem to mind her vague response though.

"You're in a town in Altea."

"A-Altea?!"

That was something she was not expecting. Altea…the place where her ancestor Marth was born and raised; the place that would eventually be the center of the world, Ylisstol; her home…

"Miss, are you okay? You look rather…depressed."

Lucina blinked. "Oh? Oh, no…I'm not."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, there came a scream, a scream so shrill that even the densest slab of glass could shatter into a million, little shards. Lucina cupped a hand over one ear, wincing as the piercing screech tore its claws into her eardrum. The man she was talking to had just completely disappeared from her line of sight. She did notice, however, that the flag was gone, and the windows of his shop were shut and boarded. In fact, the once lively streets of Altea looked like a complete ghost town. Not a person was to be found. Lucina could feel her stomach drop at the sight, even more so when there was a heavy rumbling in the ground. From a somewhat long distance, a huge crowd of burly men in dark clothing came riding in on their horses, quickly flooding the streets with their black presence.

"Lass! Get in here if you value your maidenhood!"

Lucina looked and saw that the man had opened up his door, but was ready to close it if she didn't get in there in a few seconds. She quickly ran inside, and the man shut and locked the door behind him.

"Who are those people?" She asked, out of breath.

The man scowled, but there was a look of fear across his features. "The Soothsires." He spoke in a way that made it seem like saying the name was a crime in itself. "They're a rowdy bunch from the Samsooth Mountains. Oh, they're awful. They raid the towns, steal all of our merchandise, plunder everything we have, kidnap our women and children, and kill those who dare try to get in their way."

"Doesn't the prince in charge even do anything?!"

"Prince Marth is a good man. He's done lots for us poor town folk. There hasn't even been much talk of poverty as of late. But alas, another war is beginning to brew. So while our prince is away, we only have knights to protect us, but that doesn't even intimidate the local rogues. They raid our village every week. Prince Marth's older sister and wife, Naga bless them, have been killed so there is no one left in the line of Anri to protect us."

Lucina felt herself getting pale. She recalled a lot of history centering around her heritage, but something didn't seem right. In the original text, it said that Marth had fought in two wars, and came out victorious in both. He had married his wife Caeda, and the two lived out long lives together. But the man had just revealed to her that Caeda had passed away, and Marth was fighting in yet another war. What kind of timeline did Old Hubba send her to? This was just as dark as the future she had been in only a couple years ago!

"A war?!" She exclaimed, but the man immediately shushed her.

"Not so loud. The Soothsires can hear the sound of a drop of blood fall to the floor a mile away. But yes…it's the country of Dohlr. The Dark Dragon Medeus has been resurrected yet again. Not so long ago, Prince Marth had been able to defeat him, but without the restoration of the Emblem, Medeus has come back and with a vengeance. It's a long story, but both Elice and Caeda have died as a result. Something about a clone Elice killing Caeda while the real Elice was sacrificed to Medeus to restore him…but I'm not too privy on the details."

Yes, this had to be an alternate place in time. This is what would happen had Marth not completely restored the Fire Emblem. Ylisse wouldn't even exist…in this state, it would be impossible for Ylisse to ever happen in this world. Lucina didn't know why, but she felt she had to get herself involved in this affair. Even though this timeline didn't matter, the people here would still suffer and that was the one thing she wanted to eliminate from the entire universe for good. Yes, suffering would always happen no matter what, but it didn't hurt to try and alleviate some of the pain temporarily.

The sound of that familiar, ear-piercing scream returned, louder this time. Lucina looked through a hole in the wood that was barring the windows, and was able to see a poor woman, probably fourteen, being harassed by five other men. Where were the knights? Why wasn't anyone helping this woman? Lucina felt her blood boil over as she watched the men put their dirty hands on places of the young woman's body that shouldn't be touched without her consent. By the look on her face, she was most definitely NOT consenting.

"I can't bear to watch this any longer." Lucina muttered.

Much to her convenience, the man ran an armory. She walked over to one of the racks that held swords on display, and grabbed one that seemed durable.

"I'm going to borrow this one for a moment." She simply said, already heading towards the door. "I'll pay to have it fixed up for whatever damages it may sustain."

The man immediately intercepted her path, an alarmed expression on his face. "Are you _mad_, woman? Have you any idea what these men could do to you?"

"I'm completely aware of what they could do to me. But what if that was your wife or daughter out there? Would you be willing to sit by and let these brigands do whatever they want to her?"

The man twiddled his fingers. "Heh, I don't have a wife or kids. I've lived alone as soon as I moved out of my parents' house."

"All the same though…we are one people." Lucina pushed herself past him. "I'm going out there. Should I fall…please see to the safety of that young girl."

"I'll…I'll see what I can do…" The man looked at her as if she was about to take her last steps in this life. Given the situation she was willingly plunging into, she must have been doing just that.

As soon as Lucina walked out of the building and heard the lock click behind her, there was no turning back. From afar, she tried assessing the situation and was already forming a plan in her head. She knew she had to react fast now, for the men were already tearing the girl's clothing off. Suppressing the urge to release a battle cry, Lucina charged as fast as her legs could carry her, sword raised and ready to strike. It didn't matter which man she decided to go after first, they were all targets just waiting to be impaled on her sword in her eyes. Her first swing was so powerful, that she nearly cleaved her first enemy in half. The other four jumped back in surprise upon seeing their friend fall lifeless to the ground, now lying as a bloody heap. The surprise didn't last long as they set their sights on the one who just made that first kill. While their attention was elsewhere, the girl picked herself up and ran to the safety of the man running the armory. Lucina breathed out a sigh of relief, knowing the girl was safe. Her first mission was complete; now it was time to move on to her second one: staying alive.

* * *

In another part of the town, a knight wearing red armor had just finished off two bandits who were trying to break into a jewelry shop. He shook his head at those pitiful corpses before scanning the area for anymore signs of trouble. The other knights were succeeding in driving the bandits away, but the number of serious injuries sustained on their side was steadily increasing. At this rate, the bandits would be able to overpower the Altean soldiers in a heartbeat. The knight shook his head, unable to think of that possibility. He swore to protect this land at all costs; he refused to see it fall to dragons, much less to bandits. He already failed once to protect this kingdom when Prince Marth left it under his watch, and he was not about to let that failure repeat itself. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a group of bandits hastily swinging their swords around, trying to take down a swift-looking opponent. He couldn't tell the person's origins, but if he or she was fighting against the bandits, then it was probably safe to assume that they were an ally. As he glanced more carefully, he saw that the person looked eerily familiar somehow.

"Prince Marth…?" He questioned himself. "Impossible…he's away fighting in the war…"

At that moment, a pained yell came from the person, indicating that a bandit had managed to get a hit in. The voice was high-pitched like a woman's, but gender didn't matter at this point. All that mattered at this point was that that person's life was on the line just from that one blow. The knight immediately urged his mount faster towards the carnage, hoping to get there in time before certain doom could happen upon that stranger.

* * *

Lucina bit her tongue as she felt the blood flowing from her leg. Either these men were really skilled in fighting, or she was just falling out of practice. When was the last time she had been in action like this? She knew from the start that she was making a rash decision, but she couldn't allow that woman to be assaulted any longer. But now her life was in jeopardy, as she was taking on more wounds from the four remaining men. They were powerful, and she was greatly outnumbered, two factors that were definitely working against her. The blade of an axe slammed into her side, and she couldn't prevent another scream from coming out. She was in a dire situation, quickly losing the upper hand in this skirmish. The tip of a sword went completely through her leg, and she saw that the blood was quickly pouring out of her. No…this was it. She was going to die. It didn't matter though. She didn't belong anywhere. After achieving her goal of bringing peace to her land that was almost lost, her presence was no longer needed in that time. In fact, it would only serve to interfere and disturb the order in that place, and she couldn't allow that to happen. Disappearance from there, and maybe from the entire universe was for the best. At least that girl was safe; now she could leave this parallel world without any regrets.

Her body collided with the ground as she was knocked off her feet with the blunt edge of her enemy's weapon. Lucina glared at the tip of the sword that was staring at her right between her eyes. Then she glared up at the sword's wielder, just to show that she was not afraid of dying.

"Do it."

Her words rang in her ears as if someone else had spoken for her. The sword was raised high in the air. Lucina just watched it intently as it stayed there for a few seconds. Before she could see it fall, she closed her eyes and remembered the faces of the ones she loved so dearly…loved them so much that she had to leave them behind. The sword fell.

* * *

**Wow, 130 views in the past week since this was uploaded. Thanks guys! Special thanks to Gunlord for his(?) review. For those who are curious, the events in this chapter is centered around the bad ending of FE12, which is what happens if you do not restore the Fire Emblem. Props to the first one to name the unidentified red knight. That isn't too hard...is it?**


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